"Oregon cannot afford wasteful duplication," said Secretary of State Kate Brown, whose office conducted the audit. "We need to be sure that tax dollars are being spent efficiently and stretched as far as possible."

Housing officials took the criticism in stride, saying the audit provided an added boost for an effort already underway to untangle a variety of programs, funding sources and governments that work to help low-income earners find safe and affordable housing, housing officials said.

"The Secretary of State's audit identified and helped quantify a problem we knew existed and have been working diligently to address," said Margaret S. Van Vliet, the department's head, in a statement.

The audit didn't provide specific guidelines for restructuring. However, the housing department is expected to present a set of recommendations for streamlining to the Legislature in February.